A tour of the fascinating ruins on the Italian island of Favignana, Sicily

The Italian island of Sicily is full of interesting historical sites, and the same is true of the nearby Aegadian Islands.

A World War II torpedo depot on Mount Erice, on the island of Sicily
Etna, the highest active volcano in Europe, and the fascinating interior of its Grotta Cassone

The Aegadian Islands, part of the region of Sicily, are an archipelago made up of five islands and several islets. The largest of the islands is Favignana, which is shaped like a butterfly and was called Egusa in ancient times. Located northwest of Sicily and 7 km from its coast, Favignana has an area of ​​19.8 square kilometers and around 4,500 inhabitants. The island is known for its crystal-clear waters, mountainous landscape, and some truly fascinating ruins.

One of the most interesting ruins on the island is the Castle of Santa Caterina, a medieval fortification built by the Normans during their conquest of Sicily and the southern part of the Italian Peninsula in the 11th century. In addition, the island has a network of coastal fortifications from the time of the Second World War, which may have been the reason why on 6 May 1943 Favignana suffered a bombing by a formation of B-17s from the 301st Bombardment Group of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF), which caused a lot of damage on the island and also casualties among the civilian population.

Today, Favignana is a tourist destination that offers beautiful beaches and also historical sites worth visiting. As part of its Sicilian campaign, Aventuras Entresierras (my favorite YouTube channel and the one I recommend you subscribe to) has published today a complete video touring some of the fascinating ruins on that island (the video is in Spanish, you can activate automatic English subtitles in the bottom bar of the player):

You can see some screenshots from this video here (I admit it was hard to select them, as it's so full of interesting content). We start with this impressive quarry, which is very reminiscent of the powder magazines of the Sierra de San Cristóbal, in Spain, which Aventuras Entresierras showed us three years ago.

A lighthouse that my friend Manolo was kind enough to dedicate to me. This is the Punta Sottile lighthouse, located on the western end of the island. It was built in 1860 and rebuilt in 1904. It has a 38-meter-high, conical cylindrical tower and its light has a range of 25 nautical miles. It is operated by the Italian Navy.

Santa Caterina Castle, which I mentioned above. The site of the castle once housed a Saracen watchtower built in 810. Its current form is due to the reconstruction of this fortress at the end of the 15th century, when the island was part of the Crown of Aragon. During the 19th century, the castle was used as a prison.

We conclude with this image of the Punta Marsala lighthouse, on the eastern tip of the island. It's a small lighthouse: its tower is 14 meters high. It was activated in 1859 and had a range of 15 nautical miles. It is currently abandoned, although it remains the property of the Italian Navy.